Xiao Buli rolled his eyes helplessly, somewhat at a loss for words over the unexpected encounter.
That evening, Xiao Buli went home to pack some things and returned overnight to his workplace. Despite the company's numerous red flags, his curiosity about the game he was about to play had only intensified.
The next morning, Xiao Buli got up early, as he was always a disciplined man. Although it was his first time working for someone else, it didn't make him feel uncomfortable. After freshening up and looking at himself in the mirror, his reflection seemed a bit more profound—probably a side effect of long-term involvement in all sorts of scheming and strategies. His gaze was a tad too sharp. He cracked a slight smile to soften his expression, ready to start the day's work.
He thought to himself as he walked out.
The company provided three meals a day, and in the dining hall, he encountered his colleagues. Much to his surprise, there seemed to be quite a few of them working together—about sixty or seventy people. Apart from a few uniformed staff, the rest were likely professional gamers, all of a similar age, ranging from twenty to thirty years old, wearing uniforms that clearly divided them into four groups, just as Qin Shimoon had described.
"Hey Xiao, over here," he turned his head and saw it was the young man named Li Baocheng calling him.
Carrying his tray, he walked over to where Sun Bin and the chubby guy were also sitting. The man in the hood whose name he didn't know wasn't there. He didn't ask, as it was none of his business.
The four of them sat eating when Han Baiqiang couldn't hold back his curiosity, "What game are we actually going to play?"
Sun Bin smirked coolly, "Whatever the game, it must be quite special; otherwise, they wouldn't offer such high salaries to hire us."
Han Baiqiang gave him a disdainful look, thinking the comment was obvious. "Anyway, how do you guys plan to play? This game is probably going to be tough!" he probed further.
Sun Bin smirked again, "For a true expert, any game should be as straightforward as carving up an ox. What's this about difficulty? But for those average players, of course, they should be extra cautious. After all, I assume none of you would like to lose this job." As he spoke, he glanced at the three of them with that peculiar mocking look in his eyes, as if he was the so-called expert, and the others were the 'average players' he referred to.
Whether Li Baocheng didn't catch the hidden meaning in his words or not, he excitedly said, "Sun is right. No matter how difficult the game, it probably isn't unsolvable. We just need to be cautious in our approach. Not to brag, but my gaming skills are certainly not average. If I could pass the tests at this company, I assume you guys are pretty impressive too. You could say we are the elites of gaming. If we join forces, what game could possibly pose a challenge?"
Han Baiqiang initially felt irked by Sun Bin's words but then nodded confidently, "Naturally."
Without having seen the game, Xiao Buli just smiled and nodded in agreement, not joining in on the discussion. His years as a professional gamer had taught him not to judge prematurely—a habit he maintained at that moment.
Like most jobs, the work hours here were from nine to five. As it was almost nine o'clock, Qin Shimoon and a man who wore sunglasses indoors as well, walked over. The man was quite tall at one meter ninety, with a muscular build, drawing the attention of the others.
"Are you guys settling in alright?"
The four nodded, and Qin Shimoon, still with her sweet, charming smile, pointed to the man beside her, "This is Li Jian. You'll be familiarizing yourselves with the game together, and he'll also be the supervisor for the new recruits."
The group greeted Li Jian, and Xiao Buli glanced behind the two of them, not seeing the man in the hood. He thought to himself that perhaps an introduction wasn't needed for that person. However, with his cautious nature, he instinctively refrained from asking further questions. Maybe that person wasn't quite like the rest of the new recruits.
After breakfast, the four of them followed Li Jian into a room with white curtains and an examination bed, making it resemble a clinic. The group looked around curiously.
"Before you enter the studio, we need to give each of you a simple physical examination," Li Jian explained, seeing everyone's puzzled expressions.
So that's how it is, Xiao Buli nodded, quite like what you'd expect from a big company.
A medical staff member in a white coat gave each of the four a quick examination, shining a torch into their eyes, checking their tongues, asking about basic health conditions, and finally drawing a little blood from each. Compared to regular medical examinations, this process seemed somewhat informal.
After letting them rest for a while and drink some water, Li Jian finally took them to another room. This one seemed more appropriate—it was large and appeared to be specially prepared for the newcomers, with dozens of computers split into different booths.
"This place used to be used for training new employees, but now it's seldom used. Make yourselves comfortable."
As the four were choosing their computers, Li Jian started to explain, "I suppose you're all familiar with online games, surely all veteran players. So without further ado, let me introduce your job duties."
The group perked up, sitting down to listen attentively – after all, this was about their job performance, and they couldn't afford not to take it seriously.
Suddenly, Li Jian cleared his throat, "The game you'll be playing is called 'Absolute Death Domain.' It's extremely difficult and has some similarities to 'Diablo II' in Expert Mode. Your character absolutely cannot die; once dead, there's no coming back to life. Considering game accounts are very rare and you can only create one character per account, as soon as your game character dies, your contract with the company also ends. So, please remember, do not rush into challenging high-difficulty monsters in the game. Stay low-key; otherwise, if you die, you must leave. Understood?"
Everyone agreed, and Xiao Buli felt even more curious – no death allowed? Could it be an Expert Level Character? But even for Expert Level Characters, couldn't they just rebuild a character upon death? Or perhaps this game is still in the testing phase? That seemed to be the only explanation.
Although he was already aware of these terms, he still found it odd to hear Li Jian emphasize them again and again.
Nevertheless, he chose not to ask further questions, instead quietly taking note in his mind.
"Next, in the game, all items on your character are owned by the company; you only have the right to use them. Any command given concerning your game character must be executed immediately. Understood?"
The four nodded again.
Li Baocheng seemed to be on the verge of saying something but then hesitated. Meanwhile, Han Baiqiang, more direct, asked, "So if the higher-ups order us to die, we have to comply?"
Li Jian laughed, "Exactly. If the company requires your game character to die, you must obey. However, if your character's death is due to the company's fault, although you'll still be dismissed, you can receive a minimum compensation of one hundred thousand yuan. But remember, we will only pay this money if we have proven that the command we gave was mistaken and caused your character's death. So don't try to engineer the death of your character."
After hearing this, they exchanged glances, all detecting the surprise in each other's eyes – one hundred thousand yuan, that was no small sum.